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The Knowledge of Water (Vanished Child #2)
by
Sarah Smith (Goodreads Author)
As revealed in The Knowledge of Water, a great flood washed through the streets in Paris 1910, exposing secrets thought to be sufficiently buried: the death of a singer, an art forgery, matters of the heart. The complex web of stories then tells a larger tale, that of the lives of Parisians in the time. The characters find their passion in art and murder and the beauty of
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Mass Market Paperback, 416 pages
Published
August 1st 2000
by Ballantine Books
(first published 1996)
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Community Reviews
(showing 1-30)
A friend recommended this book a few years ago, and I loved it and devoured it in just a few days. I went back and read part one of the trilogy then the final third volume as well. Not sure why this author isn't better known; perhaps she's one of those "cup of tea" authors, as in "not my" or "very much my". I've suggested this book to a few people and they haven't liked it, alas. However I think Smith's depiction of the 1910 Paris flood is riveting.
I kept reading and reading and reading...and I never really got any "knowledge" of anything...
...except that Parisians at the turn of the Century actually had some form of condom.
Werid.
...except that Parisians at the turn of the Century actually had some form of condom.
Werid.
What can I say about this book? It seemed to me to start out so slow I let it sit for months, and then I finish it today at a dead heat after being brought to tears three or more times. It has a hundred supporting characters and they are all as vivid as Suzanne Mallais or Georges Vittal. It starts out slow like the flood of a river carrying a million objets d'art along in its waters, then it reaches the vertex quicker than you thought, and takes its time to subside. The great Paris flood of 1910
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At the moment I'm finding this book slow and dry and a bit tedious. I'm nearly at page 200 and neither of the "thrilling" elements from the back cover have been more than hinted at. We will see. I will finish the book because I can't not...
So it's finished, and I'm still not thrilled with it. Despite my best efforts I could not make myself care about the characters. The plot lines were much too scattered to give me time to embrace any one side of the story, and the 240 pages of "character develo ...more
So it's finished, and I'm still not thrilled with it. Despite my best efforts I could not make myself care about the characters. The plot lines were much too scattered to give me time to embrace any one side of the story, and the 240 pages of "character develo ...more
I began reading this historical suspense novel, not realizing it was the middle book of a trilogy, but couldn't put it down anyway even if I had wanted to track down the first part at that point. It is of that genre that is a little hard to categorize, somewhat described as a literary mystery, historical speculation full of dangerous characters and attractive characters with dangerous doubts and personal mysteries.
It is set in Paris and is dark and troubling and it tells the further tale of the ...more
It is set in Paris and is dark and troubling and it tells the further tale of the ...more
It's been a long while since I've felt this conflicted about a book. Let's just say that about halfway thru it I was so irritated that I nearly quit right then, but the last 50-or-so pages grabbed me so hard that I was completely riveted.
First off - this is the middle volume of an apparent trilogy (which is NOT noted anywhere on the cover/title page), beginning with The Vanished Child and culminating with A Citizen of the Country. That said, I was able to enjoy The Knowledge of Water completely ...more
First off - this is the middle volume of an apparent trilogy (which is NOT noted anywhere on the cover/title page), beginning with The Vanished Child and culminating with A Citizen of the Country. That said, I was able to enjoy The Knowledge of Water completely ...more
Jan 28, 2011
Christa Ludlow
rated it
it was amazing
Shelves:
love-it-love-it-love-it,
historical-crime
This is the second in the 'Vanished Child Trilogy' by this author. I love this book for so many reasons. The recreation of Paris ca 1910 and its characters is incredible. While some of the characters are based on real people (Monet, Colette) and the story borrows from real events (the theft of the Mona Lisa) it is none the less stunning for that.
The story concerns Perdita, a young blind pianist who comes to Paris to study and finds that her determination to become a concert pianist faces many o ...more
The story concerns Perdita, a young blind pianist who comes to Paris to study and finds that her determination to become a concert pianist faces many o ...more
"Lushly erotic...The centerpiece of Sarah Smith's elegant period novel is the torrential flood that nearly sweapt Paris away in 1910....An exquisite stylist, she observes her characters in the most intimate detail, defining them with witty precision and placing them in a rain-drenched portrait of Edwardian Paris that could hang in the Louvre."
--The New York Times Book Review
While at times this book was "lushly erotic" in writing, overall it was a major disappointment. If it was meant to be suspe ...more
--The New York Times Book Review
While at times this book was "lushly erotic" in writing, overall it was a major disappointment. If it was meant to be suspe ...more
I was looking forward to this based upon recommendations, but ended up pretty disappointed. It is not bad, and the bits about the great Paris Flood are really interesting. However, the story is scattered, the romance is completely disjointed, and the navel-gazing over being a wife/mother versus having a vocation (or even a serious avocation) seems at once strident and anachronistic. For a more satisfying exploration of that theme in the late 19th century, read The Awakening.
Second of a trilogy; set in Paris in 1910 with incessant rain leading to huge floods (true); subplots involving the theft of the Mona Lisa (based on a true case) and art fraud by Millais and his wife (not true)all around the affair between the blind pianist, Perdita, and Baron Dr Alexander von Reisdan with much lecturing about feminism and combining career and marriage. And, yes I do plan to read the third in the trilogy as soon as it comes from the library.
Disappointing. It should have engaged me much more, but the characters were none of them particularly likeable, there were too many plot threads, and it was all too muddled and elliptical, including the anguished deliberations of all the characters. There were good, interesting ideas that needed more shape and better writing. I was interested enough to carry on reading to the end, but it was a hard slog.
This smart novel kept me interested until the final pages. I enjoyed learning about art forgery and women's rights in 1910 France. My only regret is that I came to this second book in the trilogy first. Now, I need to backtrack and read the first book. This could make a good movie, too, with the City of Love at high tide as a backdrop.
KNOWLEDGE OF WATER - NR
Smith, Sarah - 2nd in Reisden series
During the devastating floods of 1910, Perdita Halley, a young woman studying music in Paris, finds herself falling passionately in love with Baron Alexander von Reisden, and together they flee a madman with dual personalities and confront the theft of the Mona Lisa.
the mystery group liked this but I just couldn't get into it.
Smith, Sarah - 2nd in Reisden series
During the devastating floods of 1910, Perdita Halley, a young woman studying music in Paris, finds herself falling passionately in love with Baron Alexander von Reisden, and together they flee a madman with dual personalities and confront the theft of the Mona Lisa.
the mystery group liked this but I just couldn't get into it.
I did not like it has much as the first book in the series, the Vanished Child. The book is at tines very confusing and references things in the Vanished Child It was not a straight mystery but had a lot of philosophy which I felt took from the story.
The best part of the book is that it gave a good picture of Paris in the Nineteenth century.
The best part of the book is that it gave a good picture of Paris in the Nineteenth century.
Awesome. Set in Paris in 1910 - deals with sex - art and women artists - forgery of art - forgery in relationships - forgery of the self - floods of many kinds - marriage and women's work -
A sequel to The Vanished Child, supposedly the second in a trilogy. I need to get ahold of the next book!
A sequel to The Vanished Child, supposedly the second in a trilogy. I need to get ahold of the next book!
I wanted to like this book. It seemed to have a lot of elements that would appeal to me...Parisian setting, historical intrigue, etc. But when push came to shove, I was simply not a fan of Smith's writing style. The best explanation I can give is that I found the tone pretentious as a result of its self-aware literary and artistic references.
This book had potential but never quite lived up to it. At least three intriguing story lines that just petered out somewhere in the way-too-long middle. Paris, art, music, romance, murder, mystery - how can you go wrong? But somehow the author did.
Not recommended although I did like the first part of this trilogy. Not inclined to read the last one though.
Not recommended although I did like the first part of this trilogy. Not inclined to read the last one though.
A suspense/mystery with depth and feeling! Very entertaining, plus a good bit more.
While reading, I was fully immersed and in suspension of disbelief, although afterwards my analytical brain started to question the liklihood of some characters' behavior :-)
While reading, I was fully immersed and in suspension of disbelief, although afterwards my analytical brain started to question the liklihood of some characters' behavior :-)
Oct 14, 2007
Melissa
rated it
really liked it
Recommends it for:
literate mystery fans
Shelves:
funfiction
Very ambitious mystery about pianist Perdita Halley and painter Suzanne Mallais and the intersection of their lives. Tries to be a little too much--murder mystery, feminist tract, and history of art. Worthwhile read, nonetheless.
I was constantly distracted and felt the story meandered.
Fasincating! History Mystery Paris geology and floods!
One of the most erudite romances ever. And it is a romance, no matter what the New Yorker may think. Alexander Reisden rates up there as one of my favorite all-time heroes.
So far, so good. This was buried on the home bookshelves.
Really disappointed with this book. I couldn't understand what happened to the relationship between the two main characters. They were so open with each other in the earlier book.
A delight.
Set in 1910 Paris, this is a novel about art, love and marriage. You learn about the life of Parisians prior, during and after the flooding of the Seine.
Pretty dull read.
really enjoyed this book and could put it down.would love to read it again.
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Sarah Smith has been interested in ghosts and storytelling since she was four. Her sitter told her Japanese ghost stories at night, which she retold on the schoolbus the next morning. When she heard the story of the haunted house and the Perkins Bequest, she knew she had to write about it. No one knows what became of the real Perkins Bequest. She hopes The Other Side of Dark may help solve the mys
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Vanished Child
(3 books)
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